Cooperating against terrorism - and war

here was no ambiguity on part of Pakistan in condemning the outrage in Mumbai and there is no hesitation on part of our government to extend cooperation in investigation of allegations linking perpetrator to terrorist groups in Pakistan. There was therefore no warrant for mudslinging and suspicion, setback to normalization process and build up of tension which activated alarm bells not only in Islamabad and New Delhi but also in capitals of friendly foreign countries. The problem evidently is not of intent to cooperate against terrorism but of capability on part of both Pakistan and India for efficient intelligence and preemptive administrative action. The two developing countries need desperately to build up capacity to enhance internal security but tragically limited resources are too often diverted for military contingencies. Also the legal infrastructrure needs to be erected for cooperation in investiagtion and transfer of suspects from one country to the other.

The immediate concern in the wake of the November 26 outrage in Mumbai is once again about peace between Pakistan and India. Alarmed at the recrudescence of tension between the two nuclear neighbors, the United States has dispatched its Secretary of State to New Delhi and Islamabad with the aim of preventing another confrontation. Sensing the threat of aggression Pakistan has had to focus efforts on galvanizing the nation for defence. The All Parties Conference on Tuesday placed necessary emphasis on declaration of ‘steadfast resolve of the Pakistani nation to defend its honour and dignity as well as Pakistan’s sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity.’

Obviously the two countries need desperately to develop capacity for ensuring internal security. Unlike the United States which has acted to strengthen homeland security since 9/11, India has not succeeded to seal Mumbai against recurrent outrages that too heavy toll of life and property in 1993 and 2006, again last month. Our plight in Pakistan is even worse. Incidence of terrorist violence and suicide bombings have actually increased. After every major attack authorities announce appointment of investigation committees and issue orders for arrest and punishment of culprits. But seldom does one hear of follow up action or results. A year after Benazir Bhutto’s assassination the masterminds remain untraced and at large to plan and spread death and destruction.

Our government should realize it needs to improve governance. Signs of popular impatience are not confined to India where public opinion is seething against government’s inefficiency in preventing terrorist attacks. Indian authorities ignored reports of sightings of suspicious boats along the Maharashtra coast. A news agency has reported American intelligence agencies conveyed to their Indian counterparts in mid-October information about possibility of attack ‘from the sea against hotels and business centres in Mumbai.’ A week after the Mumbai attacks, Indian authorities apparently have no solid information about identities of ten terrorists who perpetrated the outrage. Only that can explain the New Delhi’s resort to despatch to Islamabad of still another copy of an old list of twenty Indian and Pakistani nationals allegedly implicated in crimes in India who were allegedly provided shelter in Pakistan. Whether any of them was allegedly involved in the latest terrorist attack remains unclear.

Like war, terrorism is a scourge outlawed by established principles of international law, and every state has an obligation to cooperate in efforts to eradicate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Pakistan has been in the front line of the war against terrorism. Adversity has consolidated consensus within the country against terrorism within Pakistan. The parliament adopted a unanimous resolution on October 22 to condemn extremism, militancy and terrorism and affirm commitment to eliminating the menace it poses to our state. The declaration issued by the All Parties Conference on Tuesday reiterates and reinforces Pakistan’s commitment: it ‘abhors any act of violence perpetrated against innocent people.’ Notable too was the fatwa issued by the United Scholars Councils in Lahore and Karachi declaring that suicide bombings are ‘haram’ – prohibited – and Islam does not sanction calls for jihad by any individual.

Another pointer to the emergence of an environment in favour of initiatives for peace and cooperation with India against terrorism is affirmation by the All Parties Conference of ‘Pakistan’s desire to pursue its constructive engagement with India in a comprehensive manner.’ If a similar atmosphere is fostered by the government of India, it would facilitate concrete forms of cooperation against terrorism such as thorough and transparent investigation and even transfer of suspects. The prospect for such cooperation can be strengthened by conclusion of an extradition treaty.

Under established international practice extradition is a legal act requiring arrest and transfer of an accused by authorities of one state at the request of another on basis of a treaty. Such treaties are always reciprocal in obligations and applicable prospectively from a date agreed by them. No law abiding state can undertake extradition without due process and no self-respecting state would acquiesce in an arbitrary demand for unilateral surrender of a person. After such a demand by one of the influential Indian participants in negotiations at the Agra Summit in June 2001 was predictably turned down by Pakistan, he was apparently so chagrined that he sabotaged the Agra declaration that was earlier agreed and ready for signatures.

Pakistan & USA should seize opportunity

Comment
Abdul Sattar
Editor, Foreign Affairs



President-elect Barack Obama brings enlightened predispositions to his high office as well as a commitment to change policies that made George W. Bush the most unpopular President of the United States in several decades. Vice President-elect Joseph Biden is respected as a sagacious leader who has long exercised beneficent influence on US foreign policy. He has mature and sympathetic understanding of Pakistan and will no doubt be a source of strength to the new administration in devising a strategy for better bilateral relations to serve not only current but also long-term interests. Of course the opportunity has to be seized by Islamabad: it will require not only clear recognition of parallel interests but also identification of plans and policies for their efficient and effective promotion.

Both countries share equal interest in closer cooperation in the fight against terrorism. Just as saving America from another 9/11 remains the Number One external preoccupation of the United States, Pakistan, too, has a vital stake in containing this scourge. Our country has suffered more terrorist attacks and greater toll of death and destruction than any other in the world. Presence of Al-Qaeda foreigners on Pakistan territory and the rising tide of domestic extremism and militancy pose an existential threat both within and abroad. At stake is the vision of our founding fathers of a progressive, moderate and democratic nation committed to development of a modern Islamic state. Its rescue is vital for our nation’s future as also for peace in the region and coexistence between civilizations. Terrorist incidents in other countries have often been linked to extremist religious organizations in Pakistan.

The first issue requiring immediate attention in Washington relates to cross-border missile and drone attacks that have strained cooperation between Pakistan and the United States. Although directed against Al-Qaeda, the bombings have also killed many innocent Pakistanis. Indications are that Mr. Obama id cognizant of the seriousness of the problem and that he will abandon policy of such attacks in Pakistan as well as Afghanistan where air and artillery attacks on crowded villages have made foreign forces an object of hatred making Taliban a lesser evil. Too much should not be made of the statement Mr. Obama gave during the election campaign that he would authorize cross-border attacks because it was qualified by two conditions, namely if Osama Bin Laden was in sight in Pakistan and if Pakistan government was unwilling to ‘take him out.’

US Policy. An earnest attempt at comprehension of US objectives in Pakistan and Afghanistan should start by taking note that Washington twice disengaged from the region in 1970s following the collapse of its policy in South Asia and internal turmoil in Afghanistan after Daud Khan’s coup, and in 1990 when US terminated assistance to Pakistan and Afghanistan leaving them in the lurch with a colossal burden of problems created by Soviet military intervention. For over a decade US remained disengaged. It was 9/11 that triggered the realization in Washington that abandoning the region was a blunder. Only then United States decided to make a ‘durable commitment’ to both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its purpose now was to eliminate international terrorism and contribute to alleviation of poverty which breeds desperation. The United States and the European Union are now investing substantial resources for economic development and stabilization of the two countries.

It is to be hoped that the current economic crisis and the need to save America from another Great Depression would not constrain US resources and undermine the durability of US commitment in our region. The imminent dispatch of additional US forces to Afghanistan does not necessarily evidence a desire to prolong US military presence. More likely it is a response to the need to counter the threat to stability of Afghanistan posed by the resurgent Taliban. American and NATO combat forces are too inadequate and the new Afghan army too weak to counter the threat. Surge of US forces in Afghanistan follows the success of similar strategy in Iraq and if it proves effectual it could lead to reduction and withdrawal of foreign forces.

Meanwhile, USA and EU are also likely to increase security assistance to reinforce the strength of the Afghan army and economic assistance for reconstruction of Afghanistan. Still another change is expected in strategy for political stabilization by induction of Taliban. The Obama administration is likely to revert to the original objective of the intervention in Afghanistan, which was to punish and destroy Al-Qaeda, and not to exclude religious parties from political power. The Taliban regime committed the blunder of allowing Osama Bin Laden to abuse Afghan hospitality but they are not ideological proponents of international terrorism.

Pakistan’s Policy. To revert to Pakistan-US relations, constructive changes in the offing provide an opportunity for Islamabad to intensify security cooperation with the United States in order to eliminate Al-Qaeda presence on Pakistan territory, promote internal security against terrorism by stemming the tide of obscurantism and extremism that threatens the realization of the progressive and modernizing vision of our nation. Islamabad also needs to prepare a strategy for reforms towards improvement of governance and launching the state on the road to development and consolidation. The United States and the European Union appear inclined to provide substantial economic assistance if Pakistan can set its own house in order. Months ago Senators Biden and Luger introduced a bill in the Senate to increase economic assistance to Pakistan several fold to $1.5 billion a year. Farsighted leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from both political parties, including Senator Barack Obama, recognized that greater emphasis needed to be placed on economic development and social progress in Pakistan.

Emphasize Education. Experience of fast-developing countries like China, South Korea, India and Brazil testifies to the crucial role of education especially in science and technology for economic and social development. Pakistan, a laggard in the field, needs to commit larger resources for promotion of technical education and improvement of standards. It has too long neglected the desperate need for upgrading the quality and scope of education. Enlightened governments in many Muslim countries have recognized the need to pay equal attention to this- as well as other-worldly subjects. In Saudi Arabia, for instance, there are no separate madaris confined to Islamic studies. Religious teaching is compulsory in all schools as one of the subjects of a broad common curriculum. Specialization in religious studies begins at higher levels.

It is high time for Pakistan to catch up with contemporary standards of broad basic education which is imperative for an ethical life as well as economic and social progress. A democratic government is better placed to introduce reforms and broaden curriculum in madaris. It is a primary obligation of the government to invest requisite funds to ensure education of children. Current fiscal constraints should not be allowed to obstruct the imperative.

Drone Strike Not Meant For Mehsud

The drone strike that resulted in the death of Pakistan’s most wanted terrorist is believed to be a result of deliberately planted false intelligence, sources in South Waziristan have confirmed.

Rival militants close to Qari Zainullah Mehsud (who was killed on Baitullah Mehsud’s orders) tipped off suspected local CIA informers about the presence of a ‘high value afghan taliban target’ in a house in South Waziristan.

Qari Zainuddin, a former aide of Baitullah Mehsud, had denounced Baitullah Mehsud in June this year and had revealed Mehsud’s links with Indian and Israeli intelligence agencies. Zainuddin was gunned down in his office the next day and Baitullah Mehsud claimed responsibility for the killing.

In what appears to be an attempt to extract revenge by those loyal to Qari Zainuddin, false intelligence was deliberately fed to a number of local residents suspected of working as informers for the Americans in Afghanistan. Hours later, a CIA operated drone guided by a physically dropped electronic homing device, attacked and destroyed the house which the Americans believed was occupied by Anti-US Afghan Taliban.

The CIA has been paying tribesman in Waziristan “plant the electronic devices” near militant safehouses, reported the Guardian on June 1st this year. “Hours or days later, a drone, guided by the signal from the chip, destroys the building with a salvo of missiles.”

This isn’t the first time an electronic homing device has led the Americans to strike a wrong target. The Guardian’s report continues:


Word of these tiny transmitters has been circulating in militant circles for months. In early April, the Pakistani Taliban leader Mullah Nazir said he had caught “spies” who were inserting into militants’ phones “location-tracking SIMs” — Subscriber Identity Module cards, used to identify mobile devices on a cellular network.

Ten days later, 19 year-old Habibur Rehman made a videotaped “confession” of planting such devices, just before he was executed by the Taliban as an American spy. “I was given $122 to drop chips wrapped in cigarette paper at Al Qaeda and Taliban houses,” he said. If I was successful, I was told, I would be given thousands of dollars.”

But Rehman says he didn’t just tag jihadists with the devices. “The money was good so I started throwing the chips all over. I knew people were dying because of what I was doing, but I needed the money,” he added. Which raises the possibility that the unmanned aircraft — America’s key weapons in its covert war on Pakistan’s jihadists and insurgents — may have been lead to the wrong targets.

The ‘wrong target’ for the Americans on this occasion has turned out to be the right one for the Pakistanis, who have seen a violent rise in suicide attacks and assasinations in recent years, most of which had been tracked backed to Baitullah Mehsud’s Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

Pakistani security officials have long complained about the Americans’ choice of targets.






Various reports have also surfaced in recent months disclosing the extent of support Baitullah Mehsud received from India and Israel, using Afghanistan as a base for training and arming anti-Pakistan terrorists. US army and NATO issued rifles and communication equipment has been seized from captured militants and TTP safehouses, and captured terrorists have often spoken of training by Indian nationals in Afghanistan.

The Americans were concentrating on Taliban and Qaeda forces that attack American and coalition troops in Afghanistan but were ignoring militants operating in Pakistan, a senior Pakistani official in the administration that oversees the tribal region told TIME Magazine last year.

“The Americans are not interested in our bad guys,” the official said, referring in particular to Baitullah Mehsud.

Other sources within the Pakistani intelligence community firmly believe that Baitullah Mehsud was being protected by US Drones, warning him of Pakistan Army’s action and movement in advance.

It appears the Americans have finally heeded to the long-standing demand of the Pakistani security services, even if unintentionally.

عبدالرحمن ڈکیت 1995 ء سے 2009تک

عبدالرحمن ڈکیت 1995 ء سے 2009تک

مرزاغلام مصطفی، اے آروائی نیوز کراچی

اٹھارہ ستمبرانیس سوپچانوے کو اپنی والدہ کا قتل کرکے جرائم پیشہ زندگی کا آغاز کرنے والے عبدالرحمن ڈکیت کی عمر اس وقت صرف بیس سال تھی۔ کہا جاتا ہے کہ جب رحمن ڈکیت نے منظم گروہ کی صورت اختیار کی توانہیں پولیس ، ایجنسیوں اور سیاسی جماعتوں نے اپنے اپنے مقاصد کے لیے استعمال کیا۔

لیاری میں سیاسی سرگرمیاں رحمن ڈکیت کی حمایت کے بغیر جاری رکھنا انتہائی مشکل تھا۔اس کے گروہ کا نیٹ ورک کراچی کے علاوہ بلوچستان میں بھی طاقتورتسلیم کیا جاتا تھا۔ یہ گروہ ڈکیتی ،اغوائے برائے تاوان اور قتل وغارت گری جیسے جرائم میں ملوث تھا۔

سندھ میں رحمان ڈکیت پراغواء برائے تاوان،بھتہ خوری،ڈکیتی اور قتل وغارت گری کے سو سے زائد مقدمات قائم کیے گئے تاہم اس سے قبل پولیس نے اس گروہ کے خلاف جتنے بھی آپریشن کیے ان میں رحمن ڈکیت کامیابی سے بچ نکلنے میں کامیاب ہوگیا۔

رحمن ڈکیت کا باپ حاجی داد محمد عرف دادل اور چچا شیر محمد عرف شیرو انیس سو پچاس اور ساٹھ کی دہائی میں سنیما ہالز میں ٹکٹ بلیک کرتے اور نشہ کرتے کرتے لیاری میں منشیات کے دھندے کے بے تاج بادشاہ بن گئے۔اسی دوران انہیں ایک مضبوط مخالف کالاناگ کا سامنا کرنا پڑا۔کالاناگ ایک پولیس چھاپے کے دوران فرار ہوتے ہوئے گر کر ہلاک ہو گیا۔

کالاناگ کا بیٹا اللہ بخش عرف کالاناگ ٹو کے نام سے جرائم کی دنیامیں متعارف ہوا۔اس وقت حاجی لعل محمد عرف لالو اور اقبال بابو عرف بابو ڈکیت کے مخالف گروہ سرگرم تھے۔کالاناگ ٹو نے بابو ڈکیت کے گروہ میں شمولیت اختیار کی۔لیاری میں کشت و خون کا یہی دور تھاجب دادل کے بیٹے رحمٰن ڈکیت نے جرائم کی دنیا میں قدم رکھا۔

حاجی لالو اور بابو ڈکیت کی دشمنی کے اس دور میں بابو نیلالو کو قتل کرنے کیلئے حنیف بجولہ نامی کرائے کے قاتل کی خدمات حاصل کیں گئیں۔اس وقت لالو اپنے دوست کے یتیم بیٹے رحمن کو ڈکیت بننے کی تربیت دے رہا تھا۔اسی دوران بابو ڈکیت کو قتل کرنے کیلئے جب رحمن کلاشنکوف لے کر پہنچا تو بابو نے رحمن کا مذاق اڑاتے ہوئے اسے بتایا کہ رحمن کی والدہ سے اس کے تعلقات تھے اور رحمن دادل کا نہیں بلکہ اس کا بیٹا ہے۔یہ سن کر رحمن نے بابو کو مارنے کے بجائے بدچلنی کے شبہے میں اپنی ماں کو قتل کردیا۔۔
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حاجی لالو رحمن ڈکیت کا ساتھ حاصل کرچکا تھا اسی ساتھ کی بدولت بابو ڈکیت کے چاروں بیٹے گینگ وار کی بھینٹ چڑھ گئے۔بابو ڈکیت کو انیس سو چھیانوے میں فالج کا دورہ پڑا اور وہ گرفتار ہو گیا۔ اسی دوران رحمن ڈکیت اور حاجی لالو کا بیٹا یاسر عرفات بھی گرفتار کرلیے گئے۔

رحمن ڈکیت پر قائم بیس مقدمات میں سے انیس میں حاجی لالو نے اس کی ضمانت کرا لی۔انیس سو ستانوے میں ایک مقدمے کی سماعت کے لئیعدالت لے جائے جانے کے دوران رحمن ڈکیت پولیس کی حراست سے فرار ہو گیا۔

حاجی لالو اوررحمن ڈکیت کے درمیان اس وقت اختلافات پیدا ہوناشروع ہوئے جب رحمن کو لالو کے کہنے پر تاوان کے لئے اغواء کیے گئے ایک شخص کو تاوان میں حصہ ملے بغیر چھوڑنا پڑا۔اس دوران لالو کے گروپ میں اس کا ایک اور بیٹا ارشد پپو شامل ہوااوریہیں سے لیاری گینگ وار نے ایک نیا رخ اختیار کرلیا۔

رحمن ڈکیت کے ایک ٹرانسپورٹر دوست فیض محمد عرف فیضو کی ارشد پپو کے ہاتھوں ہلاکت کے بعد مخالفت دشمنی میں بدل گئی۔ دوہزار ایک میں رحمن ڈکیت کے والد کے دوست اور استاد حاجی لالو کی گرفتاری کے بعد لالو گینگ کا سربراہ ارشد پپو بن گیا۔ارشد پپونے اب رحمن ڈکیت کے خلاف کھلی کارروائیاں شروع کر دیں۔اس کے بعد سے اب تک لیاری گینگ وار میں بیس پولیس اہلکاروں سمیت تین سو ستر سے زائد افراد ہلاک ہو چکے ہیں۔

رحمن ڈکیت کو لیاری کے ہزاروں غریبوں اور بیواوٴں کو ماہانہ راشن اور مالی امداد کی فراہمی کے حوالے سے بھی کافی شہرت ہے۔

لیاری گینگ وارپر قابو پانے میں ناکامی پر گزشتہ آٹھ سال میں چھ ٹی پی اوز تبدیل ہو چکے ہیں۔

دوہزار چار میں انڈسٹریل کرائم یونٹ تشکیل دے کر بھتہ خوری روکنے کی ناکام کوشش کی گئی۔ دوہزار پانچ میں یہ یونٹ نامعلوم وجوہات کی بنا پر بند کردیا گیا۔

اس کے بعد لیاری ٹاسک فورس کو لیاری میں گینگ وار کے خاتمے کی ذمہ داری دی گئی۔

رحمن ڈکیت اس سے پہلے کوئٹہ میں گرفتار ہو کر انتہائی آسانی سے پولیس کے محاصرے سے فرار ہونے میں کامیاب ہو چکا تھا۔ اس کی گرفتاری اور موت کا سبب بننے والے مبینہ آخری پولیس مقابلے کے متعلق بھی مختلف حلقوں کی جانب سے شکوک و شبہات کا اظہار کیا جارہا ہے۔حکومت کی جانب سے تشکیل کردہ لیاری امن کمیٹی نے بھی رحمن ڈکیت کی ہلاکت پر کراچی میں تین روزہ شٹر ڈاوٴن ہڑتال کا اعلان کیا ہے۔

Indian police ‘fake encounter’ killings

A series of photos purportedly showing the extra-judicial execution of a young man by Indian police has thrown the spotlight on alleged human rights abuses by the country's security forces.

The sequence of photographs published by news magazine Tehelka and aired on TV shows police dragging the man into a building in the northeastern state of Manipur in broad daylight, and ends with his lifeless body flung on a truck.

Security forces say the 27-year-old hospital attendant was killed in an exchange of fire, but activists say the death is an example of a ‘fake encounter,’ a practice in which police gun down a civilian and claim the victim initiated the shootout.

According to a sharply critical report by New York-based Human Rights Watch published last week, such incidents are frequent in India.

The rights group interviewed more than 80 police officers and said nearly all of them believed illegal detention, torture and even killing were legitimate tools for law enforcement.

‘The government should be concerned that for everyone who is now entering police custody, there's fear from that person's relatives that he or she will end up dead,’ said Human Rights Watch senior researcher Meenakshi Ganguly.

Sanjay Patil, a consultant with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and author of a report on police reform, says fake encounters are ‘glorified’ in India because of the influence of Bollywood action movies and a slow-moving
justice system which means suspects sometimes await trial for years.

‘People like the immediacy of that justice but they only like it when it's somebody else,’ Patil said.

India's home ministry refused to comment on the Human Rights Watch report, but junior home minister Ajay Maken told parliament earlier this month that as many as 28 fake encounters had taken place between April and July alone.

In one high-profile case in 2005, police in the Hindu-nationalist ruled state of Gujarat gunned down a Muslim man, Sohrabuddin Sheikh, claiming he planned to assassinate chief minister Narendra Modi.

The state admitted in court that police had killed Sheikh in a staged gun battle in the suburbs of the western state's largest city Ahmedabad and that Sheikh's wife had been killed as well, apparently to silence her as a witness.

The Indian press has likened such cases to Clint Eastwood's 1971 vigilante cop thriller ‘Dirty Harry,’ with critics decrying the emergence of police officers ready to take the law into their own hands.

Six officers have been suspended over the Manipur killing and three top officers were jailed for the Gujarat shootings.

In an interview by Human Rights Watch with a police officer about alleged shootouts, he said: ‘In 99.1 percent (of cases), it's fake.... In a real encounter, the police would also get injured.’

The report said overstretched and under-resourced police forces often resort to violent tactics to please superiors and fulfill public expectations of being valiant crime fighters.

‘I fear being put in jail (for killing a suspect) but if I don't do it, I'll lose my position,’ the report quoted another officer as saying.

Police also often act on anecdotal evidence or tips from powerful people with vested interests or a political grudge, rather than conducting their own investigations when pursuing cases, Patil said.

Arun Bhagat, a former director of India's domestic intelligence agency the Intelligence Bureau, says instead of being punished, officials are often promoted for rights abuses.

The fact many officers must work round the clock, earn tiny salaries and live far from their families in filthy barracks, undermines morale and pushes them to breaking point, the rights report said.

The low wages have fuelled rampant police corruption and people often pay bribes to get police to investigate a case -- or drop cases.

What has prevented any major reforms is that ‘politicians feel they will lose a lot of authority and a lot of power’ and that they will be unable to get police to do their bidding, Bhagat said.

Now after more than six decades of independence, most people accept police strong-arm tactics and impunity as the norm, observers say.

‘India is modernising rapidly, but the police continue to use their old methods: abuse and threats,’ said Human Rights Watch Asia director Brad Adams.

‘It's time for the government to stop talking about reform and fix the system.’

Rehman Dakait was killed late Sunday by Karachi Police,

KARACHI: Notorious Karachi criminal Rehman Dakait was killed late Sunday by Karachi Police, along with his three accomplices, according to DawnNews.

Dakait was reportedly involved in over 80 criminal cases and was a central figure in the gang wars of Lyari – one of the most populous and oldest localities of Karachi.

Dakait and his three accomplices were killed in an exchange of fire with the police.

According to police statements, Dakait’s car was stopped for a routine vehicle late Sunday, which the dacoits tried to escape, forcing the police to open fire.

Abdul Rehman alias Rehman Dakait was wanted by police in over 80 cases and was involved in heinous crimes including kidnapping for ransom and murder.

A massive police operation against Dakait and other criminals of Lyari had been launched by Karachi Police.

Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Karachi Waseem Ahmed told reporters that the killing of the notorious gang-leader was a major achievement for the Karachi Police.

‘Heavy contingents of Police and Rangers have been deployed across Lyari to avoid any possible reaction following Dakait’s killing.

Pakistan Independence Day

The controversy over Baitullah Mehsud's death persists

The Pakistani government says it intends to provide conclusive proof that Baitullah Mehsud, leader of the Pakistani Taliban, is dead.
"All the credible intelligence I have from that area does finally confirm [his death]," Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the BBC.
But the government says it hopes to get DNA evidence to back up its claims.
Baitullah Mehsud was reported to have been killed in a US missile strike last week in his remote tribal stronghold.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says that the Pakistani government is growing increasingly confident that it will soon be able to prove that Baitullah Mehsud was killed in the attack.
In Washington, US National Security Adviser Jim Jones put the level of US certainty that he had been killed "in the 90% category".
But Taliban sources have denied these claims, insisting he is still alive.
DNA efforts
Mr Malik said the government was working to obtain DNA evidence to establish that the Taliban commander had been killed.
See a map of the region
The government had previously said that it would be extremely difficult to get DNA proof of his death.

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But Mr Malik told the BBC's Urdu service that they did have DNA from Mr Mehsud's brother, who was killed a few months ago.
However, correspondents say that getting hold of Baitullah Mehsud's body in the remote and hostile terrain of South Waziristan could prove to be a stumbling block.
The Pakistani interior minister has challenged the Taliban to prove its leaders are still alive - something the Taliban commanders dismissed as a ploy to flush them out into the open
Taliban turmoil
On Sunday a key aide of the militant commander said that Baitullah Mehsud was gravely ill and had not been injured in the missile attack.
It is thought that in making the statement the Taliban are preparing the ground for an announcement that Pakistan's most wanted man is in fact dead, correspondents say.
But the fate of the entire leadership of the Pakistani Taliban is subject to intense speculation, after days of conflicting reports.



Profile: Baitullah Mehsud
Mr Malik said that intelligence sources indicated that the next tier of Taliban leadership was in turmoil after it was reported that up to two potential successors were killed in a gun battle.
"There was a scuffle and there have been some deaths and they are now in disarray and I think with this action their back has been broken," Mr Malik said.
"I feel that after killing of Baitullah Mehsud, the whole Tehreek-e-Taliban is in disarray," he said.
Senior Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud contacted the BBC on Saturday to say his chief was alive and well.
But officials in Islamabad later said that Hakimullah was himself one of those killed in the reported fight over succession.
The area is extremely remote and officials have constantly emphasised the difficulty of getting accurate information from the region.
The interior minister said the government was determined to pursue the remaining Taliban leaders encamped in the area.
"We are not going to stop our law enforcement action until the last Talib is flushed out. They have no option except to get killed or surrender," he said.
But Mr Malik expressed concern about the possibility of al-Qaeda moving in to fill any void that might have been left by the death of senior Taliban commanders.
"They are trying to find someone to install him as chief terrorist in area," he said.

Taliban is expanding aggressively in Afghanistan

General Stanley McChrystal said aggressive Taliban tactics meant he would have to move troops from remote regions to the country's cities, and warned international casualties would remain high.
His comments came as a prominent US military analyst said the the US must send an additional 45,000 troops to Afghanistan and dramatically expand the country's army. Anthony Cordesman recently presented his views after working on a 60-day review of the war for General McChrystal.

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He added that he would also do everything necessary to secure Kandahar, the spiritual home of the Taliban, and would send more US troops there.
He told the Wall street Journal: "It's a very aggressive enemy right now," "We've got to stop their momentum, stop their initiative. It's hard work."
The Taliban are spreading from their traditional heartlands in southern Afghanistan into formerly stable areas of the north and west he said.
Barack Obama has sent 21,000 extra troops to the country this year, which will take the total number of US forces to 68,000 by the end of 2009.
General McChrystal's 60-day review of the situation in Afghanistan is widely expected to call for still more troops.
He said he would direct a "very significant" expansion of the Afghan army and national police, which could double in size under plans being discussed by senior US military officers, the paper said.
"The insurgents may have lost virtually every tactical clash (against Nato troops), but they have expanded their areas of influence from a presence in some 30 of Afghanistan's 364 districts in 2003 to one in some 160 districts by the end of 2008, while insurgent attacks increased by 60 per cent during October 2008 to April 2009 alone," Mr Cordesman wrote. "Nato must change its strategy and tactics after years in which member countries, particularly the United States, failed to react to the seriousness of the emerging insurgency."

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